Monthly Archives: February 2017

Dear Readers, Followers, and Friends, For almost 5 years now, yovisto has maintained and hosted this daily blog on the history of science, technology, and art under its domain. From now on, the blog will continue under its own label “SciHi – The Daily Blog on Science, Technology & Art in History” under our new domain scihi.org. Of course, we will keep our affiliation with yovisto’s video search engine. Moreover, the…

On February 28, 1898, American physician Philip Showalter Hench was born. Hench, along with his Mayo Clinic co-worker Edward Calvin Kendall and Swiss chemist Tadeus Reichstein was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1950 for the discovery of the hormone cortisone, and its application for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Youth and Education Philip Showalter Hench was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, the son of Jacob Bixler Hench and…

On February 27, 1910, American aeronautical and systems engineer Kelly Johnson was born. He is recognized for his contributions to a series of important aircraft designs, most notably the Lockheed U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird.[4] Besides the first production aircraft to exceed Mach 3, he also produced the first fighter capable of Mach 2, and many other contributions to a large number of aircraft. Early Years Clarence Leonard Johnson was enthusiastic for aircraft…

On February 26, 1866, American chemical industrialist Herbert Henry Dow was born. Dow best known as the founder of the American multinational conglomerate Dow Chemical. He also was a prolific inventor of chemical processes, compounds, and products, and was a successful businessman. Herbert Henry Dow was born in Belleville, Ontario, Canada, the eldest child of Americans Joseph Henry Dow, an inventor and mechanical engineer, and his wife, Sarah Bunnell. Soon after his…

On February 25, 1909, Soviet physicist Lev Artsimovich was born. Artsimovich worked on the field of nuclear fusion and plasma physics and is best known for providing the basis of the Tokamak, a device capable of confining ultra-high temperature plasma suitable for research into controlled nuclear fusion. “Science is a way to pursue one’s sense of inquiry at the expense of the State.” — Lev Artsimovich, as quoted by E.E. Kintner in…

On February 24, 1955, American businessman, inventor, and industrial designer Steve Jobs was born. Jobs is widely recognized as a pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, along with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. “What a computer is to me is it’s the most remarkable tool that we have ever come up with. It’s the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds.” — Steve Jobs, as quoted in Memory and…

On February 23, 1834, German Africa Explorer Gustav Nachtigal was born. He is further known as the German Empire’s consul-general for Tunisia and Commissioner for West Africa. His mission as commissioner resulted in Togoland and Kamerun becoming the first colonies of a German colonial empire. Early Years Gustav Nachtigal’s father, the priest Carl Friedrich Nachtigal, died of lung consumption as early as 1839. After his father’s death Gustav Nachtigal grew up in Stendal, where…

On February 22, 1635, on the urging of Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister of France, King Louis XIII of France, formally established the Académie française, the French academy. It is the pre-eminent French council for matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie consists of forty members, known informally as “les immortels” (the immortals). The body has the task of acting as an official authority on the language; it is charged with publishing…

On February 21, 1849, French-Canadian surveyor Édouard-Gaston Deville was born. Deville perfected the first practical method of photogrammetry, the making of maps based on photography. Édouard-Gaston Deville served in the French navy and conducted hydrographic surveys in the South Sea islands and Peru. In 1874, he moved to Canada. one year later, Deville became surveyor and astronomer in Quebec and was soon appointed the province’s top surveyor, Inspector of Surveys. Édouard-Gaston Deville was designated…

On February 20, 1901, French-born American microbiologist, experimental pathologist, environmentalist, humanist, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize René Jules Dubos was born. Dubos is credited for having made famous Jacques Ellul‘s environmental maxim, “Think globally, act locally” (penser global, agir local). In Research, he is best known for his pioneer work in isolating antibacterial substances from certain soil microorganisms and the discovery of major antibiotic. Dubos was born in Saint-Brice-sous-Forêt, France, and…